New Jersey online gambling survey reveals fewer residents are playing on unregulated online gambling websites and it’s the lure of fun and not money that keeps them tuning in.
At the turn of the year, Commercial Intelligence – the insights arm of Clarion Event’s Gaming Division – polled 506 online players from New Jersey in a bid to understand behavioral characteristics.
At that time, 24 percent of respondents coughed up to playing on unregulated online gambling sites, a number that has reduced to 16% in a June revisit handed the code name Wave 2.
The 8 percent reduction is good news for the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement (NJDGE), who has been busy penning cease and desist letters to unauthorized online gaming sites, and their affiliates, since the results of the January poll revealed.
Since the first wave of questions were received by online punters, the Winning Poker Network (WPN), the Equity Poker Network (EPN) and Merge Gaming have all left the NJ sphere of influence, and this has no doubt affected the number of players having fun on unregulated sites.
The key findings of Wave 2 were:
• More online players are using the state approved online sites
• Online players are turned on by bonus schemes
• 43 percent of online gamblers started after the Nov 2013 launch
• The number of female players is on the increase
• The average age of online gamblers is 51
• 60 percent of online gamblers started gambling in land-based casinos
• Most online gamblers say they play for fun rather than money
Revenue might not be trending in the right direction but it seems player numbers are. In June, New Jersey’s online-gambling market shrank for the third consecutive month after hitting a peak of $11.9 million in March, but the poll suggested that the number of first time online gamblers rose 8 percent from 36 percent back in Jan to 44 percent in June.
80 percent of people say they gamble for fun, although 1 in 5 do gamble to make money. It also seems the older you are, the more likely you are too gamble for the money, with 27 percent of the 65+ brigade saying it’s all about the green.
Interestingly, of those who say they prefer to gamble for money; their preferred game is one of chance. Roulette coming out on top when it comes to the moneymaker’s game of choice with Blackjack and Poker not far behind.
Online slots continue to be the favorite online game of choice with 40 percent of those polled preferring to pull the virtual handle, whilst 34 percent log on for a game of online poker.
When it comes to brand recognition Caesars Casino leads the way, although Borgata is the brand that pulls in the numbers. The trio of 888 brands (888.com, 888.poker and 888.casino) scored the lowest in terms of brand awareness and registered player numbers of the 15 sites available in the poll.
There was also an increase in the amount wagered per session with the January figure of $71.43 rising to $126.39 in June. Good news for Governor’s Christie, who is still blushing after his suggested $180 million online gambling tax windfall, came in at a paltry $12 million.
